Managing Organisational Behaviour: Attitudes, Job Satisfaction and Motivation

The report evaluates the impact of attitudes, job satisfaction and motivation on organisational behaviour. It analyses different theories to understand their role in influencing the performance of a company. The report also discusses the factors that influence job satisfaction and motivation of employees and how the management can use them to improve the performance of their employees.

Managing Organisational Behaviour
Student Name:
Student Number:
Date:

Executive Summary
The aim of this report is to evaluate the relationship between attitudes, job satisfaction and
motivation at work through relevant theories to analyse their impact on organisational
behaviour. Different aspects of these factors are analysed in this report to understand their
role in influencing the performance of a company. Various theories are assessed to
understand how the management can use them to improve the performance of their
employees and sustain the company’s future growth.
Page 1

Table of Contents
Introduction...............................................................................................................................3
Attitude......................................................................................................................................3
Job Satisfaction...........................................................................................................................4
Impact of Attitudes and Job Satisfaction on Organisational Behaviour....................................5
Motivation..................................................................................................................................6
Conclusion..................................................................................................................................6
References..................................................................................................................................8
Page 2

Introduction
In this report, the factors related to attitude of employees and job satisfaction level will be
analysed. This report will evaluate different literatures and theories to identify the impact of
attitudes and job satisfaction on organisational behaviour and the relationship between
motivations, attitude and job satisfaction of employees.
Attitude
ABC model of attitudes provides three components of an attitude which include affective
(A), behaviour (B) and cognitive (C). Cognitive dissonance is a mental discomfort which a
person experienced due to holding two or more contradictory beliefs, values or ideas
(Minton, Cornwell and Kahle, 2017). Types of job attitudes include employee engagement,
organisational commitment, job satisfaction, job involvement, perceived organisational
support (POS) and psychological empowerment. Job satisfaction is referred to the measure
of an employee’s feeling of contentment which is derives from his/her job. There are a
number of factors which influence job satisfaction which includes basic pay, nature of work,
working environment, management’s attitude and others. Job satisfaction can be measured
through cognitive, affective and behavioural components. As per Zopiatis, Constanti and
Theocharous (2014), job involvement is referred to the psychological and emotional
connection which an employee has with his/her job, profession and the company.
Generally, punctuality, attentiveness, and top performance are indications of job
involvement of an employee. Organisational commitment is defined as the bond between
workers and the enterprise. It is determined based on their commitment to the corporation
and whether or not they feel if they fit in and understand the goals of the company or not.
According to Battistelli et al. (2016), POS referred to the perception of an employee relating
to the extent up to which he/she believes that the organisation values his/her contribution
and cares about his/her wellbeing. Albrecht et al. (2015) provided that employee
engagement is referred to the extent to which workers feel passionate regarding their jobs,
and they are committed to putting extra efforts in their work. It is separate from employee
satisfaction because factors which drive employee satisfaction are separate from those that
drive employee engagement. All these factors are separate concepts which are linked with
Page 3

each other, and they can be evaluated by the management to motivate their employees to
improve their performance. As per Herzberg’s Motivation-Hygiene theory, there are two
different set of factors which influence job satisfaction and dissatisfaction of employees.
Hygiene factors influence job dissatisfaction which includes working condition, base pay,
relationships, supervision quality and organisational policies. Motivational factors influence
job satisfaction which includes achievement, work itself, personal growth, recognition and
responsibility (Atalic, Can and Canturk, 2016). Thus, employee engagement and job
involvement are affected by hygiene factors, whereas, motivational factors influence POS,
job satisfaction and job involvement which highlights a link between them.
Job Satisfaction
There are various factors which influence job satisfaction level of employees which include
recognition, advancement, personal development opportunities, work itself, responsibility
and achievements (Anand, 2018). Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs is a relevant theory which
can be used by the management to evaluate the needs of employees to evaluate their job
satisfaction level. The needs of people are categorised into five categories in hierarchical
order which include physiological, safety, belongings, esteem and self-actualisation needs.
Firstly, salary of an employee affects his/her physiological needs. Without appropriate basic
pay which is enough for a person to satisfy his/her basic human needs such as food, water,
warmth and rest, an employee cannot be motived to perform better (Jonas, 2016). On the
other hand, the employee benefits are related to safety needs of employees. After fulfilling
physiological needs, a person moved on to other needs, and he/she cannot be satisfied with
the previous need.
As per Rasskazova, Ivanova and Sheldon (2016), employee benefits given by organisations to
their employees such as pension, increment and others affects employee motivation after
fulfilling of physiological needs. Work environment must also be safe for employees because
they are not motivated to perform in hostile working environment. It also affects their
belongingness needs because they did not feel affection and affiliation in negative working
environment. Relations between co-workers come in the category of belongingness because
without acceptance and affection, employees are demotivated. It also leads to conflict in the
workplace. The relationship with supervisors comes in the category of esteem needs in
Page 4

which employees strive for approval, recognition and respect. Negative relationship with the
management reduces job satisfaction of employees which also reduces their performance
(Lee, Back and Chan, 2015). Thus, job satisfaction factors are influenced by the needs of
employees, and the management should continuously monitor them to improve their
performance.
Impact of Attitudes and Job Satisfaction on Organisational Behaviour
Attitude of employees in the workplace plays a crucial role in success of the enterprise and
the efficiency of operations. Job satisfaction benefits the company by reducing employee
turnover, increasing productivity, reducing absenteeism, creating better working
environment and sustaining future growth. Both of these factors are linked with each other,
and the corporations can implement organisational behaviour theories to determine and
influence these factors (Yousef, 2017). As per the ABC model, the affective, behavioural and
cognitive components influence the behaviour of employees. The negative attitude of an
employee towards his/her work or the management resulted in decreasing efficiency and
effectiveness of the workplace. As per Herzberg Hygiene-Motivation theory, the attitude of
an employee is affected by the job satisfaction levels. Factors such as lack of basic pay,
hostile working conditions, negative workplace relationships, and bad supervisions
negatively reflect on the attitude of employees, and they are more likely to be dissatisfied
from their job (Hur, 2018). These factors fulfil the basic needs of employees; without
fulfilling these requirements, the employees are not motived to achieve organisational goals
and objectives because they remain busy ensuring that their basic needs are fulfilled.
Similarly, the attitude of employees is positively influenced by motivational factors such as
recognition for work, appreciation from supervisors, availability of growth opportunities and
the work itself. As per Judge et al. (2017), the attitude and job satisfaction level of one
employee has an adverse impact on the organisational behaviour because it creates a
negative working environment. The effectiveness of other employees and the whole
workplace is affected by conflict between two or more employees or groups. On the other
hand, satisfied employees have positive attitude, and they perform at their best which assist
the company in achieving its corporate goals (Lee, Park and Koo, 2015). They are more likely
to encourage other employees to improve their performance as well and they consider
Page 5

competition as a way to motivate them to perform better rather than a way to cause
conflicts. Therefore, corporations should evaluate the attitude and job satisfaction level of
employees by implementing organisational behaviour theories to positively influence their
effectiveness.
Motivation
As provided by Maslow in Hierarchy of needs theory, the needs of employees influence their
motivational level which influences their job satisfaction and dissatisfaction level as well.
Motivated employees are happy employees, and they have positive attitude at the
workplace because they are satisfied with their job. According to McClelland’s Human
Motivation theory, there are motivators which influence an employee’s attitude and job
satisfaction level which ultimately motivate the employee to perform better (Kanfer, Frese
and Johnson, 2017). The first dominant motivator is achievement. The attitude of a person
who has achievement as a motivator has a strong need to set goals, and he/she prefer to
take calculated risks. These employees often prefer to work alone, and they like to receive
regular feedbacks. They have a challenging attitude in the workplace, and they are satisfied
through motivational factors such as recognition, appreciation and achievement. These
employees prefer non-monetary rewards over monetary rewards because they prioritise
recognition and appreciation above material things.
Affiliation is another dominant motivator; those employees are motivated through affiliation
that wants to belong to a group and wants to be linked. They come in the category of
belongingness in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs theory, and they favour collaboration over
competition (Lazaroiu, 2015). They have a positive attitude towards others, and they did not
like to take high risks. These employees prefer to remain in groups and they like to build
strong relationships with other employees rather than competing with them to become
superior. They work collaboratively and avoid causing conflicts in the workplace to maintain
the positive energy in the company. Lastly, power is a dominant motivator for employees
with characteristics such as who wants control and influence others, win arguments with
others, enjoy recognition and competition. McClelland provides that these employees
prefer to lead others; they are motivated through recognition and advancement (Steel et al.,
2018). Conclusively, the employees have different types of attitudes which impact their job
Page 6

satisfaction level, and the management should implement organisational behaviour theories
to assess and influence these factors in order to motivate them to improve their
performance and achieve organisational goals.
Conclusion
In conclusion, there are different types of job attitudes which influence the performance of
employees. Different factors affect job satisfaction of employees such as salary, relationship,
work environment and others and the management can influence them to improve their
performance. Attitude and job satisfaction level of employees affect organisational
behaviour and motivation which resulted in affecting their and the company’s performance.
Page 7

References
Albrecht, S.L., Bakker, A.B., Gruman, J.A., Macey, W.H. and Saks, A.M. (2015) Employee
engagement, human resource management practices and competitive advantage: An
integrated approach. Journal of Organizational Effectiveness: People and Performance, 2(1),
pp.7-35.
Anand, S. (2018) Job Satisfaction among Teachers of Private and Government Schools: A
Comparative Analysis. Shikshan Anveshika, 8(1), pp.40-45.
Atalic, H., Can, A. and Canturk, N. (2016) Herzberg's motivation-hygiene theory applied to
high school teachers in Turkey. European Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies, 1(4), pp.90-97.
Battistelli, A., Galletta, M., Vandenberghe, C. and Odoardi, C. (2016) Perceived
organisational support, organisational commitment and self‐competence among nurses: a
study in two Italian hospitals. Journal of nursing management, 24(1), pp.E44-E53.
Hur, Y. (2018) Testing Herzberg’s Two-Factor Theory of Motivation in the Public Sector: Is it
Applicable to Public Managers?. Public Organization Review, 18(3), pp.329-343.
Jonas, J. (2016) Making practical use of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs theory to motivate
employees: a case of Masvingo Polytechnic. Journal of Management &
Administration, 2016(2), pp.105-117.
Judge, T.A., Weiss, H.M., Kammeyer-Mueller, J.D. and Hulin, C.L. (2017) Job attitudes, job
satisfaction, and job affect: A century of continuity and of change. Journal of Applied
Psychology, 102(3), p.356.
Kanfer, R., Frese, M. and Johnson, R.E. (2017) Motivation related to work: A century of
progress. Journal of Applied Psychology, 102(3), p.338.
Lazaroiu, G. (2015) Work motivation and organizational behavior. Contemporary Readings in
Law and Social Justice, 7(2), p.66.
Lee, E.S., Park, T.Y. and Koo, B. (2015) Identifying organizational identification as a basis for
attitudes and behaviors: A meta-analytic review. Psychological Bulletin, 141(5), p.1049.
Page 8

Lee, J.S., Back, K.J. and Chan, E.S. (2015) Quality of work life and job satisfaction among
frontline hotel employees: A self-determination and need satisfaction theory
approach. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 27(5), pp.768-
789.
Minton, E.A., Cornwell, T.B. and Kahle, L.R. (2017) A theoretical review of consumer priming:
Prospective theory, retrospective theory, and the affective–behavioral–cognitive
model. Journal of Consumer Behaviour, 16(4), pp.309-321.
Rasskazova, E., Ivanova, T. and Sheldon, K. (2016) Comparing the effects of low-level and
high-level worker need-satisfaction: A synthesis of the self-determination and Maslow need
theories. Motivation and Emotion, 40(4), pp.541-555.
Steel, P., Taras, V., Uggerslev, K. and Bosco, F. (2018) The happy culture: A theoretical, meta-
Analytic, and empirical review of the relationship between culture and wealth and
subjective well-being. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 22(2), pp.128-169.
Yousef, D.A. (2017) Organizational commitment, job satisfaction and attitudes toward
organizational change: A study in the local government. International Journal of Public
Administration, 40(1), pp.77-88.
Zopiatis, A., Constanti, P. and Theocharous, A.L. (2014) Job involvement, commitment,
satisfaction and turnover: Evidence from hotel employees in Cyprus. Tourism
Management, 41, pp.129-140.
Page 9